It has been recently recognized that during disasters such as earthquakes, terrorist bombing attacks, volumous falling debris e.g. during the collapse of multi-storey buildings, such as ceiling, walls etc., survivable voids, typically, triangular spaces, are seen throughout the scene which are formed around the objects in the disaster/blast struck areas. It has become recognized that such triangular spaces are safe spaces, namely being trapped in such a space would prevent injury and save the lives of those trapped. As such, the triangular spaces came to be known as the “triangle of life”.
One of the deadliest places to be trapped under during a disaster is under a desk or a table. The legs of the desk would snap when the ceiling falls thereon. Typically the ceiling will not shatter when falling and will thus fall in very large chunks. In the event that the ceiling breaks and only partially collapses, or any other falling debris impacts the table top, as seen in the prior art FIG. 20 (taken from http://dougcopp.wordpress.com/page/2 last accessed on Jun. 20, 2011), table top will snap under the weight of the falling debris forming the triangle of life on the sides of the table posts.
One solution to the problem is proposed in the utility model CN201275377Y. CN201275377 describing a multipurpose device for taking refuge from disasters, which comprises a base, a protection surface and a rotatable moving plane, which are sequentially connected with each other to form an accommodating space with a triangular cross section, wherein, a location device is arranged between the moving plane and the protection surface for fixing the opening angle. The multipurpose device has the advantages of simple structure and convenient use, and can be used as common furniture in daily normal state by opening the moving plane to a proper angle or used as a place for taking refuge in the triangular space with the most stable structure. The weight bearing capability and the impact resistance of the bevel surface of the triangular space are greatly higher than those of a horizontal bearing surface of the prior furniture, thereby greatly improving the opportunity for living in disasters. The multipurpose device can be widely used in furniture such as table, chair, bed, and cabinet.